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14 employers sign with Buck Consultants' private health exchange

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14 employers sign with Buck Consultants' private health exchange

Fourteen employers have signed up with Buck Consultants L.L.C.'s private health exchange to offer health coverage to their employees next year as employer interest in such exchanges continues to surge.

Employers that will participate in the exchange include Atlanta-based Arby's Restaurant Group Inc., Columbus, Ohio-based Bob Evans Farms Inc., Ewing, N.J.-based Church & Dwight Co. Inc., Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Domino's Pizza Inc. and Greer, S.C.-based Ovation Brands, as well as Buck Consultants' parent company, Norwalk, Conn.-based Xerox Corp.

In all, Buck said Wednesday, 400,000 employees and dependents will receive coverage through its exchange, RightOpt, which is available to employers with at least 3,000 employees.

The exchange “provided Bob Evans Farms with an opportunity to more cost-effectively deliver a competitive employer-sponsored benefit program while providing expanded plan options and resources to our employees,” Pam Kuryla, the restaurant chain's vice president of total rewards, said in a statement.

In all, the exchange offers seven health plan designs from 15 insurers, including Aetna Inc., Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Cigna Corp. and Kaiser Permanente.

The design of private insurance exchanges offered by Buck and others, which also are growing rapidly, is appealing to employers and employees, experts say.

Through the exchange model, employers agree to provide a fixed premium contribution, with employees paying more or less for their share of the premium depending on the level of coverage they choose. Through that approach, employers can cap what they pay for employee health care coverage.

In addition, the employer role as a health care plan sponsor becomes more limited, with exchange insurers handling claims and the exchange operator negotiating premium rates with insurers and assisting employees with questions.